; Picture of Organised Nature. 34-9 



the limits of terrestrial life. Next to man, in partaking of life, 

 are the mammalia, birds, amphibia, fishes, molliisca, insects, 

 worms, and zoophytes. A certain portion of the earth is 

 appointed to each class, order, or genus, and particularly to 

 each species of animal. In such situations only does each 

 species display its particular properties. A sufficient know- 

 ledge of an animal's condition cannot be learned, unless that 

 animal be considered relatively to its own peculiar and natural 

 situation. " The polar bear lives only on and between the 

 frozen plains of the north pole; the lion, only in Africa's 

 burning deserts. The inhabitants of the snow line of the 

 mountains, between the tropics, never descend to the warm 

 level, nor do those of the level ascend the mountains as far as 

 the snow line ; each altitude having its peculiar animals. The 

 mammalia remain always in their native country, during the 

 whole year ; but birds are subjected to the change of seasons. 

 They for the most part keep at a certain distance from the 

 snowline; and, in the northern hemisphere, accordingly mi- 

 grate, at the fall of the year, southward, following the apparent 

 motion of the sun, and flying from the approaching fall of 

 snow ; but they return in the spring, as fast as the receding 

 snow line will permit. Subjected to the caprice of nature, 

 their dwelling-place is much limited, although the very same 

 species seem to extend over immense districts." The native 

 country of the more perfect animals is better known than that 

 of many genera of plants, though this part of the study of 

 natural history was paid little attention to before Humboldt 

 enumerated the animals of the tropics, conformably to the dif- 

 ferent altitudes at which they live above the level of the sea. 



The marine mammalia are met with in all the seas of the 

 world, but principally in the polar seas. Quadruped land 

 mammalia extend from the snow line to the torrid zone. Apes 

 and monkeys belong to the torrid zone, but extend over a 

 small part of the temperate zone. The whale (^alae na) belongs 

 chiefly to the frozen sea. The spermaceti whale (Physeter) 

 chiefly inhabits the seas of the southern hemisphere. The 

 unicorn fish (Monodon) inhabits the same seas as the whale. 

 The dolphin is found in all seas, but chiefly in the north ; the 

 walrus and the seal in the frozen seas of both hemispheres. 

 Ruminating mammalia are common to those parts of the earth 

 of which the grasses are native. The hart family (Cervus) 

 extends from the snow line to the torrid zone ; the reindeer and 

 the elk being the most northern species, and the Mexican roe 

 and hart of the Andes the most southern. The camels of the 

 Old World belong to the warmer half of the temperate zone ; 

 those of the New World, including the lamas, to the grassy 



A A 3 



